Article Directory :: Health & Fitness Articles Salt Intake and Your Fitness - Too Much Or Not Enough Sodium Can Be Bad For the Body By Joey Atlas Republish: EasyPublish™ Published: 24Jan2009 Word count: 508 Viewed: 651 time(s) Get Free Content For Your Site When it comes to health and fitness - the public is mostly focused on carbs, protein and fat. But there are other important elements of your daily diet that need to be managed for optimal health and fitness. One of these elements, sodium (salt), should get more special attention. We do that here in this simple Q & A discussion: QUESTION: "I always hear that eating foods with too much salt is not good for my health and fitness levels, but is it also possible to suffer from not getting enough salt in my daily diet?" ANSWER: "Absolutely. For your body to function optimally, you need at least 500 milligrams of sodium/salt per day. It's required by the body for transmitting nerve impulses, helping muscles (including the heart) contract properly and sustaining the body's pH and fluid balance (both inside the cells and outside) at ideal levels. However, considering you can get that much sodium from just 1/4 teaspoon of salt, it's not surprising that a low salt intake is definitely not a problem in the U.S. Considering, the estimated average sodium intake for Americans is about 4,000 to 6,000 milligrams a day - there is a higher prevalence of too much sodium intake. Authorities currently recommend a limit zone of under two thousand four hundred (2400) milligrams a day to reduce the risk of high blood pressure and cardiovascular disease. Some experts think it should be even lower. So, what might we do? It appears that some people are more likely to be affected by sodium intake than others, and since we don't know exactly who they are, keeping sodium in check, in general, is a good thing to do for your health and long term fitness. An interesting note; There is new found interest in sodium's negative effect on bone health, adding another reason to keep salt intake levels at reasonable amounts(especially in women). But, too little sodium? Let's face it... that's likely not an issue for any American. Here's what most fitness experts do. First and foremost - if we add salt to any of our dishes - it's Sea Salt - not regular table salt. Second - We generally buy foods that have no added salt or - they have lower levels added - and we are even finding healthy packaged foods that use Sea Salt instead of regular salt. Third - and very important - because we are active people, our sodium intake has much less ill effect on us than it would a sedentary, couch potato type person. We sweat more and we use up salt as part of our electrolytes - so we don't give them a chance to build up in our bodies. So, if you are an active person, who eats well, hydrates sensibly and exercises regularly - you should not have anything to worry about in terms of your sodium intake. Special cases, such as family history (genetics) will have some influence on your sensitivity to salt intake. And, for women, your sensitivity to salt intake may vary throughout your cycle. 'The Womens' Trainer' - Joey Atlas, Exercise Physiologist, is the pro behind the Top Butt, Hip and Thigh Toning Home Exercise Program for Women. He is also the brilliant author of Amazon.com Bestseller, 'Fatness to Fitness', one of the Top Fitness Books for anyone interested in lifelong fitness success. Visit both sites for more helpful tips and articles from Joey Atlas. EasyPublish™ this article - publishers click here More articles by Joey Atlas

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